In running and fitting pipe lines for large plant layouts such as petrochemical plants, it is often necessary to join two straight sections of pipe together in an angular orientation by use of an elbow or like fitting such as a ninety degree elbow where the two straight sections are welded to the elbow fitting. The pipe sections are often of a large diameter such as six or twelve inches and are very troublesome to precisely align for welding without the assistance of several persons. The precise orientation of the pipe sections is required to assure a delivery of fluid through the pipe line which is often required to have a precise amount of fall.
Heretofore, devices have been proposed such as in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,972,816 and 2,832,152 for laying out and aligning pipe. However, these devices are relatively complex in their construction and awkward to use.
Accordingly, an important object of the present invention is to provide practical apparatus for use in aligning straight sections of pipe in a predisposed angular orientation prior to fitting and welding.
Still another important object of the present invention is to provide a device which may be utilized to align straight sections of pipe in a predisposed perpendicular orientation or off-perpendicular orientation.
Still another important object of the present invention is to provide a device for aligning straight sections of pipe in a predisposed angular orientation which may be easily operated and used in the field and which requires a minimum number of persons in the process and thus saves in labor while affording precision pipe layout.